Guest post by Professor Andrew Stuhl, Bucknell University Department of Environmental Studies and Sciences
For anyone interested in environment, history, theater, natural disasters, crisis, and/or community resilience -- check this out!
Last Thursday evening over zoom our team put on a performance over zoom based on true stories about Tropical Storm Agnes (1972) and its legacies in Pennsylvania. President Nixon called Agnes the "most destructive natural disaster in American history."
The event was recorded and you can watch it here. (The show starts at 10:25.)
How This Project Came To Be
I've been working on this project for over 2 years and couldn't be more excited for this event. It reflects research Bethany Fitch and I have done over the past 2 years: ~30 interviews with Agnes survivors, dozens of newspaper articles and personal items shared with us, thousands of Agnes anecdotes posted on Facebook, lots of background research, and much more.
This event has also been a community-driven process. There are 11 community co-sponsors of tomorrow's performance - listed below. And the cast itself is comprised of Bucknell students, community leaders in Central PA, and Agnes survivors. They're each amazing humans and, collectively, their work as a cast is so inspiring. It has been incredible during rehearsal to see connections happening and to feel we are not just remembering history, but making it.
There is so much support from area organizations to commemorate this historic flood and learn its lessons for today, even tho the event stirs up painful memories for all.
This kind of healing and strength and community gives me tons of hope for our future.
The performance also reflects the creativity of my colleagues Elaine Williams (Theatre and Dance, Bucknell), Max Wilhelm (videographer), Jeff Campbell (Zoom Master), Sandy Spieler (Facilitator of Toy Theater Workshops), and Jerry Stropnicky - Curator of Agnes Revisited and Founding Member of Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble. Jerry has been a "Storyworker in Residence" at Bucknell University this semester and it has been a real highlight of my professional career to collaborate with this team!
AND! There have been a half-dozen or more students working on this project these past few months - in classes in Bucknell University Environmental Studies & Sciences Department and Bucknell Theatre and Dance department. The students really are at the center of the script, writing, creating, dancing, and more. Huge shout out to Clare, Lydia, Katrien, John, Orli, Megan, Mesa, Tatumn, and Cam who made the script and performance what it is.
This is actually not the end of the project, just the middle. Next year, 2022, is the 50th anniversary of Agnes. We will continue to collect stories and research over the next 14 months as we plan larger, more expansive, and more imaginative events for Agnes's 50th.
Who is ready for a cruise down the Susquehanna in a traveling, floating circus??!!
Follow-Up
- Have an Agnes story? We'd love to hear it, preserve it, & share it in future events. Click here to share your story electronically or set up an interview with us.
- Wondering if we're ready for the next flood in Central Pennsylvania? Check out these resources for community resilience from some of our co-sponsors.
- Want to view a recording of the performance? Click here to relive the magic, watch for the first time, or share with a friend. (Show starts around the 10:25 min mark).
- Help us improve Agnes, Revisited! Next year, 2022, is Agnes's 50th anniversary. Over the next 14 months, we'll be dreaming up ways to commemorate this historic event with larger audiences across the river valley. We're sure we've missed elements of Agnes and can improve the show. We need your help to do that: please contact Andrew Stuhl (ats011 [at] bucknell [dot] edu) to share your feedback.
Credits and Community Co-Sponsors
The event was free, thanks to Bucknell Humanities Center and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Shout-out to Peterson Thomas Toscano for putting together a promo video!
